TIME: 13:00

DATE: 27/02/2028 EARTH CHRONOLOGY

 

With a strike of the clock, the battle started as the 155mm guns opened up perfectly on time, the first rounds flying onto their targets soon after.

The first volley of rounds blew up outside of the city walls and off target. But the second set were far more accurate, hitting right onto the northern gatehouses and blasting massive chunks out of them.

The chants in the streets were replaced by the ringing of every bell in the city. The mess of various chimes and booms echoing across the landscape as the city itself devolved into chaos. Soldiers along the other side of the river running across the bridges to reinforce the other side without orders.

Though the duke couldn’t help but notice from his overlook, that the blasts were suggesting the rounds were coming from the south side. It would make sense if their artillery was on that side and their main assault force had crossed over the river somewhere else to attack them from the least likely direction. It was a distinct possibility, but they weren’t sure. It felt somewhat like a trick to them.

However, at the same time, on the south side, the rest of the plan was kicking into action…

 

TIME: 13:06

 

The 120mm mortars started to fire on their designated targets, rounds blasting into the ground. Many to no effect, but some detonated large stocks of hidden gunpowder that threw clumps of the ground sky high. Disaster after disaster averted by the rapid bombardment.

A sparse few minutes later and the next step in the plan quickly followed. Striker light tanks rolled up to the top of the hill they were hiding behind and opened up onto the towers with their main guns.

Round after round blew holes into grey stone things and cut down the weapons along with the men inside. Killed either by the blast itself, overpressure, or the shrapnel from the rounds and shattered masonry.

The rapid barrage causing mass panic. Fear running amuck along the walls, with soldiers either trying to calm themselves or trying to get off of them by any means possible… As while they may be fighting a terror beyond comprehension to them, no one wants to stay in the line of fire in the moment. Even if they are defending their country’s heartland.

Three missile strikes however, sent every last man that could throwing themselves off the walls. The three precision strikes blasting both southern gatehouses apart and a hole in the wall between them. Rubble blasted outwards and into the city, destroying houses and crushing men, leaving nothing behind but a completely compromised first line of defences and piles of rubble. The kingdom’s plan already crumbling.

This was the time, that, from hidden positions behind houses, in ditches, and in bocages, the hoard of APCs and IFV surged forth with their support. The battle now truly beginning in earnest…

 

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While she had felt terror before and had been on an assault against a fortified position before. She truly felt like she was going to either shit herself, or puke from the terror that came from this operation.

For they had just been told the enemy finally has something approaching modern guns including some old-style heavy machine guns.

It didn’t matter if their body armour could take a hit from a 7.62 AP round and keep them safe from it, it was only on her chest and back. It didn’t exactly cover shit like her legs or arms. So, any shot there could hit a major vain or artery and possibly kill her. And it was a lot more likely for one of those shots to hit than with the ones from a musket. Making all of this far more deadly than even the attack on the town before or the ambush.

At least they’d have the Blacksuits there as well, even if they did scare the shit out of her, despite how cool they looked. Hopefully it would then be the same for their enemy, and they’ll shoot at them rather than her.

What hadn’t been settling her was the fact that yet again, she couldn’t see where she was going trapped inside of the Panther. Though this ride was significantly bumpier as they sped over humps and ditches, every bump sending everyone jumping in their seat slightly.

At least they weren’t being shot at… Yet. So, the bombardment must have had some effect at least, but who knew who was going to be hiding inside the buildings in the city itself.

All they needed to know however, was that in the words of Kenneth, “If you’re not idiots and you’re not trying to be a martyr, we should have a decent chance of living. Just as long as command doesn’t do something stupid.”

Just as long as command doesn’t do something stupid… Or we underestimate the enemy…

“Twenty seconds!” Kenneth’s voice cut through her thoughts and woke her up from her trance, her hand clasping onto her rifle and her muscles tensing.

And for the second time she heard to order to dismount fast as the HMG chugged. A sure-fire sign that they were running into gunfire. But it had to be done.

The ramp slammed open and as a squad, they all charged out, finding the area behind them surprisingly ordered, with no burning wreaks or dead allies.

However, a bullet whipping over the roof of the Panther told Emelia told her that yes, they were being shot at. Just as they were running out of their vehicles with the rest of the platoon doing the same.

She quickly pressed herself against the edge of the Panther as she moved out, peeking out from behind it, rifle out.

She could see streams of fire blasting out towards various buildings surrounding the main street they were now on. All those houses built of stone with grand and decorated fronts, which were now being torn apart by HMG and autocannon fire.

As she looked through her sights and scanned across the row of buildings, she spotted somebody trying to peek out of an alley. Quickly, her rifle pivoted towards it, and she squeezed the trigger.

Two rounds from the rifle quickly followed, both cutting through the man with a spray of blood. A knight, it seemed, toppled to the floor, his armour covered in seals and strips of paper. His… Rocket Launcher? Falling to the ground with him.

But she didn’t have much time to dwell on it as she scanned the other alleyways and street corners she could see, just waiting for some other bastard to jump out at her.

But as the guns fell silent with the sound of tumbling rubble and distant battle filling the silence, she took the opportunity to glance back. This little stint of combat seemingly over.

The rest of the squad was spread out behind her. Some people like Henry were huddled behind the Panther. While most of them were a few steps back, their smoking rifles trained on the various upper windows of the multi-story town-houses.

And beyond the collapsed grey wall a truck with black clad power armour troops trundled over the debris.

“What kept you up?” Kenneth yelled, beckoning them closer.

“Our transport had trouble crossing some of the blast craters. It slowed us down.” A low, distorted voice replied back. The Blacksuits on the truck jumping off with a loud crack as they landed on the cobbles. “We apologise for the delay. Any wounded?”

“No,” The platoon commander responded, a muscular red head with a gravelly voice, “We suppressed them enough to throw off their aim while we cut them down.”

“Good. We shall move up then to make way for the rest of the battalion. Our group is taking the east auxiliary road. We will take point.”

And with that the squad of five black suits marched in front. Their bulky heavy power armour making the soldiers into the quintessential idea of a one-man tank. Long barrelled machine-gun in hand, fed by a belt that came from a pack on their back. With it, it didn’t look to weird for them to be walking in front of a bunch of AFVs, even if they really shouldn’t be.

“Alright, you heard them, we’re moving up behind them! And we’re staying out of the transports. So, while I don’t think I need to say that, keep your eyes out for anything, anywhere, that might try to kill us. Got it?”

A bellow of “Yes ma’am” followed the platoon commander’s bellows, the sounds of their boots and the creak of wheels following. Behind them the sounds of more wheels crunching against rubble not too far off as the rest of the company started to file in.

Their marching brought them up along the main street, before taking a sharp turn right and entering into a dingy alley, the vehicles forced into single file. Though luckily it wasn’t long until they got onto another main road, the vehicles forming out into a three abreast, one behind formation.

And that is when another attack was launched on them before anyone could react.

What seemed to be RPG rounds flew from four different street corners. All but one missing, with that one round blasting into the front centre vehicle on its lower plate.

It stopped in its tracks as the sound of the explosion echoed all around and a scream came from the radio.

“Fucking shit! The driver! My fucking knee!”

“Shoot, shoot, shoot!”

Rifle and machine gun fire sprayed from both their group and the enemies hidden in seemingly every house and back alley. Fully automatic fire.

Tracers ricocheted all around Emelia, her instincts saving her from a round that landed right in the place where her leg was before she threw herself behind the nearest Panther.

Henry wasn’t so lucky however, as a round cut through his chin and face. The stunned man letting out a gargled scream as they fell to the ground, writhing with all his remaining strength in pain.

Emelia’s eyes, despite what was happening all around her, were then left staring at the dying man. The grip on her rifle loosening a little as she watched her fellow recruit suffer. She didn’t even notice the several consecutive booms of the AA guns exploding on the inner walls. Nor the screams of Alexandra until she shook their shoulders.

“Ignore him! Shoot back! We need every rifle on them now!”

“I-“

“Do it!”

Her eyes finally flicked around the fields of chaos around her with all of its terrifying sights. People bleeding and dying, barrages of incoming fire scaring the road and houses with all of their troops trying their best to cut the assailants down.

Her grip firmed as she yet again peeked behind the Panther. There in front of them all were the blacksuits, tanking round after round spat at them by the enemy’s rifles. Their guns spraying a hail of fire towards any flash of fire they could see. Their rounds punching through wooden walls on the upper floors and cracking stone on the lower ones. Screams following wherever the rounds got through.

She quickly hauled her rifle up to aim at one of those flashes inside the third floor of a town-house, flicking the fire selector and pulling the trigger. A hail of 6.5mm rounds cutting into the wattle and wood as the gun was silenced. The enemy rifleman presumably dead.

But for her trouble all she got was a fusillade of rifle fire directed towards her from a different corner. The rounds missing but causing her to reflexively pull back. To find not only Alexandra behind with her, but also Zachary who she only just noticed.

“I’ll get em for you lass!” He yelled, his unbarred grenade launcher closing with a click before he raised his gun and moved back a little.

He squinted for a moment through the sights, then fired. The grenade flying out over the APC and into an alley way down the street. The screams and explosion signalling it had hit its mark.

She let out a sigh, a slight smile spreading across her face, “Thanks!”

“Anything for a friend.”

“What about the ones inside though? I doubt we can cut them all out like this.”

Alexandra turned to her, “We can think about that when they’re not shooting us from the-“

Alexandra’s radio crackled to life at just that moment, came the voice of the Blacksuit squad leader, “We need covering fire put onto the red house, we’re breaching it.”

The three of them looked at each other for a moment. Then shrugged.

Zachary loaded another grenade and the three of them getting ready to shoot at the building with the rest of their squad. Then they got round the corner and laid into the building.

Emelia couldn’t really see anything bit it didn’t matter. Hopefully the rounds would catch some people hiding as they went through the wooden and wattle walls. Maybe they wouldn’t. Who knew until the Blacksuits got in.

And the Blacksuits in question were not taking their time at all. They charged up to the building, throwing grenades through blasted open widows on the second and first floors. For a moment they waited, completely still and ignoring the stray shots plinking into them before the grenades exploded. Then they charged in.

A few rattles of automatic fire followed before they exited out again.

Kenneth’s voice then crackled over the radio, “Get in there, the Blacksuits will cover you! They can’t get up the stairs.”

The three of them looked at each other again, Alexandra giving them all a pat on the shoulder before nodding.

Then they ran. Going as fast as their legs could. Luckily for them however, enough of the enemy had been cut down that the Blacksuits and the rest of their platoon could suppress the few remaining enemy squads left.

But they still got a few extra shots off that cut through the air, a scream behind Emelia following which she ignored, still running as fast as she could.

She then finally made it into the house, putting herself up against the window and scanning for targets with her rifle.

Then she spotted Zachary on the floor, with two rounds punched through him. One though his leg it seemed, and another through his neck.

Yet again she felt herself detach from reality, her mind screaming while her mouth didn’t.

She could only step back further into the shadows of the bottom floor as she stared. Even as the roar of aircraft overhead signalled the arrival of support and reinforcements.

She could only stare at the body of her friend. The one who managed to save her once, maybe even twice with what had just happened.

And she could have done nothing to help, even if she wanted to.